Synaptic density

The nervous system scales with animal size, maintaining function while minimizing wire. In contrast to most animal organs, which scale through the proliferation of dividing cells of similar size, brains expand by modulating the size of non-dividing neuronal cells to innervate space during development. As a result, there is notable diversity in neuronal size and structure within individual brains and between different species. This diversity raises an important question: how do neurons maintain computational function across diverse sizes while minimizing wiring costs? Two theoretical results ha

…plausible connectivity and synaptic density have historically targeted CPUs, with GPU support and ports being a relatively recent development[1][2]. Here, we present a work

Communication between neurons and glial cells are crucial to establish and maintain brain function. Some of these interactions are activity-dependent, yet it remains unexplored how acute changes in neuronal activity affect neuron-to-glial dynamics.Here, we used excitatory and inhibitory designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs (DREADD) based chemogenetic methods to study the effects of acute manipulations of a subpopulation of layer 5 cortical projection and dentate gyrus neurons in adult (Rbp4Cre) mouse brain after 90 minutes. We validated changes in activity with in vitro p

…However, its synaptic organization in the human brain is largely unknown due to the difficulties involved in studying the human brain via electron microscope techniques. Here, we used Focused Ion Beam/Scanning Electron Microscopy (FIB/SEM) to perform a 3D analysis of the synapses in all layers of the medial E

…changes in the hippocampus and reduced synaptic density in the prefrontal cortex of depressed individuals (Kang HJ et al. Nature Medicine 2012;18(9):1413-1417). Additionally, impaired mitochondrial function has been linked to susceptibility to mental health disorders.Objectives: This study aimed to examine synaptic and mitochondrial characteristics in post-mortem hippocampal tissues, specifically in individuals with MDD.Methods: The three s

…by a reliable 30% fluctuation in synaptic density observed across the estrous cycle in vitro. Despite this, the mechanisms underlying endocrine modulation of the hippocampal network remain poorly understood. Here, we used chronic two-photon (2P) imaging to demonstrate that both dendritic spine turnover and place cell

How does the organization of neural information processing enable humans’ sophisticated cognition? Here we decompose functional interactions between brain regions into synergistic and redundant components, revealing their distinct information-processing roles. Combining functional, structural, and diffusion-weighted MRI with meta-analytic results from NeuroSynth, we demonstrate that redundant interactions are predominantly associated with structurally coupled, modular sensorimotor processing. Synergistic interactions instead support integrative processes and complex cognition across higher-or